Leo stared intensely at the woman sitting in front of him, her head bowed, unwilling to lift it as if the man before her might pounce the moment their eyes met. More than ten minutes of silence hung between them, and neither wanted to utter a single word. The woman nervously squeezed her fingers on her lap, which grew increasingly sweaty.
"Different," Leo spoke, causing the woman to finally raise her head and meet the piercing gaze. However, just a few seconds later, she lowered it again, pondering the words the man had spoken.
Different? What's different? the woman wondered.
"It seems the sorceress is getting smarter," Leo said, then smirked. "Turns out she changed her tactics after her plan failed by throwing a cunning wench at me. This time, it's a housebound wench she's thrown at me. Clever."
Leo continued, making the woman in front of him grip her fingers tightly, her body trembling, and her eyes welling up. Her heart raced painfully. For the first time, someone called her that, and worse, it was her own prospective husband calling her a wench.
"Lift your head!" Leo said in his flat and cold tone, making the woman struggle to swallow her own saliva and slowly raise her head.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Alana," she answered softly as if whispering.
"So, what mission did she give you?" Leo inquired.
Mission? Alana furrowed her brow, not understanding.
"Is your mission to kill me?" Leo guessed, causing the furrow on Alana's forehead to disappear, replaced by widened eyes and a vigorous shake of her head.
"I didn't..." Alana was cut off.
"Then, what task did she assign you?" Leo interrupted.
"Aunt Rose just said she would arrange a marriage with her son," Alana explained, still speaking as quietly as possible.
"Who did she say her son is?" Leo asked.
Alana bit her lower lip before responding to Leo's question.
"Someone named Leo Smith," Alana answered, prompting a cynical laugh from Leo.
"I," Leo said, pointing to himself. "She’s not my mother, just so you know," Leo continued, his cold expression returning.
"Yes, I know deep down, Alana. 'So, you better ask that woman again who the son she meant is,'" Leo said.
"I know you're not Aunt Rose's biological son, but she clearly mentioned your name," Alana replied, gathering courage despite her rapidly beating heart.
"So, do I have to accept you as my wife?" Leo asked, staring intently at Alana, making her more fearful and nervously nod her head.
"Stand up," Leo commanded, and Alana immediately straightened her posture, standing upright in front of Leo.
Leo scrutinized Alana from head to toe. Leo knew that Alana's appearance was different from the previous women Rose sent as potential wives. Most of them were beautiful and voluptuous, adorned with all the luxuries attached to them. Whereas Alana, she had an innocent face with simple and unassuming clothing. Leo admitted, Alana was somewhat charming.
"Why should I accept you? What advantages do you have?" Leo asked, making Alana furrow her brow again.
It's like I'm applying for a job, Alana thought. "I will take care of you well."
"In that case, just be my maid," Leo quickly replied, making Alana widen her eyes, but only for a moment.
"M-maid?" stammered Alana.
"Yes, isn't the one you mentioned earlier capable of being a maid?" Leo replied, causing Alana to grip the sides of her simple white dress.
Silence lingered for a moment, and Leo could see the fear and increasing confusion on Alana's face. However, Leo's next words furrowed her brow even more.
"Never mind, just tell the sorceress to set the wedding date," Leo said, immediately getting protests from his secretary and friend Pedro.
"But sir,"
"Just take me back to my office, Pedro," Leo cut him off, making Pedro grumble and reluctantly comply with his boss's wishes. Annoyed, Pedro pushed Leo's wheelchair back to his workspace.
oOo"How was your meeting? Enjoyable?" Rose asked as Alana dropped her body onto the sofa and immediately massaged the bridge of her nose. Rose sat beside Alana, waiting for her niece's answer."Hey, answer, Aunt is waiting," Rose said, shaking Alana's shoulder. Alana instantly turned her head towards Rose with a disheveled expression.
"Don't you see my disheveled face?"
"No."
"Oh, come on, Aunt just threw me into the lion's den. I almost died standing there just from his gaze," Alana complained because that was exactly how she felt. "And you know, my fear increased when he agreed to this arranged marriage," Alana continued, massaging the bridge of her nose again, but unlike Rose, she didn't wear a happy expression.
"Really? Are you teasing me, dear? Come on, Alana, it's not April Fools."
"Do you think I'm in the mood for jokes right now?" After Alana finished her sentence, Rose suddenly screamed right next to Alana's ear while hugging her.
"Kyaaaa, finally, he's willing to get married," Rose shouted joyfully while shaking Alana's petite body.
"Aunt, stop shaking me," Alana grumbled while trying to release herself from her aunt's hug.
"So, when are you two getting married?" Rose asked.
"He leaves it to you!" Alana lazily replied.
"Is that so? Then, you'll get married next week."
"What?!" Alana shouted in disbelief.
"Why?"
"Is Aunt joking?"
"Do you think Aunt is in the mood for jokes right now?" Rose replied, turning Alana's previous words around, causing Alana to squint her eyes at Rose.
"What is Aunt planning, actually?" Alana asked, now with a serious tone.
"What is it? Aunt just wants you to be his wife."
"Come on, Aunt, don't pretend in front of me. Even he accused me of having a mission to kill him. How bad is your relationship?"
Of course, because two weeks ago, Rose suddenly visited her family, which hadn't met for more than ten years. Suddenly, Rose asked permission from Alana's father, who is also Rose's cousin, to marry Alana to her stepson. That's the only story Alana knew from her father. Somehow, her father agreed immediately and let Rose take her away. Ah, did she burden her father and brother's lives so much that they easily sent her to Rose?
"There's no mission at all. You just need to be a good wife to him and serve him wholeheartedly," Rose answered, dispelling Alana's momentary reverie.
"But he..."
"He's flawed," Rose interrupted.
Yes.
"No, he sees me like prey ready to be pounced on anytime."
"That's because you appear weak in front of him. Be yourself and conquer his heart," Rose said.
Occasionally, Alana massaged her very sore calves. The guests seemed unending since two hours ago. "Who exactly did the sorceress invite?" grumbled Leo, causing Alana to turn and narrow her eyes.Sitting, Leo felt irritated, especially since he had been standing with his wide smile for the guests. Alana even felt like her feet couldn't touch the ground anymore."Pedro, take me to the room," said Leo, making Alana turn quickly."Where to?" asked Alana, causing Pedro's movement to stop as he was about to spin Leo's wheelchair."I'll escort the master to the room," Pedro replied with a thin smile.Matching superiors and secretaries, thought Alana, both equally expressionless. "What about me?" asked Alana, finally making Leo look in her direction. "Your first task is to welcome the guests. After all, I don't know them; only 1% of all the guests I know. The rest are that sorceress's gang, so you have to take responsibility," Leo's answer made Alana widen her eyes."Me, how can I? Especiall
"Hey, wake up, Sleeping Beauty." Alana could hear someone trying to wake her up, but the drowsiness urged her to keep her eyes closed, ignoring the sounds she heard."In the count of three, if you don't wake up, I'll splash you until you're soaking wet." Again, Alana ignored the voice. And in a few seconds..."Aaaaaa...!!!" Alana's scream echoed throughout the room. Alana quickly sat up and wiped her face, which was now completely wet."What are you doing?""Waking you up, what else," Leo casually answered, making Alana shift her gaze to the clock on the nightstand, then back at Leo."You poured water on me and woke me up in the middle of the night?""So, what if I did?""If you need something, at least wake me up gently, like giving a kiss on my forehead or stroking my hair.""Are you still dreaming? Your talk is nonsense. Quickly get up and get out of my bed," Leo said, making Alana look at him with a question mark."Why? What's wrong?""I've been tortured enough sleeping in the sam
Alana continued stirring the food in front of her while occasionally turning her head. She had been waiting for Leo for more than ten minutes, but her husband seemed to linger in his office, of course, with his faithful servant, Pedro. "Ugh, my stomach won't stop growling," Alana grumbled. However, afterward, Alana saw Leo coming out with Pedro, who was pushing his wheelchair towards the dining table where Alana was. Pedro placed Leo right next to Alana, making Leo look at Pedro with irritation. Pedro, realizing his mistake, was about to pull Leo's wheelchair back, but Alana stopped him first. "It's better if you stay here so I can serve you more easily," Alana said, holding the side of Leo's wheelchair. "I don't need your help. Pedro will___" "Mr. Pedro, I'm sure you haven't had lunch either, right? Sit with us," Alana said with a threatening look in her eyes, and Pedro understood what it meant. It was Alana's way of politely asking him to leave. "Oh, no, thank you, ma'am. I'm m
Leo felt the fear slowly infiltrating his heart. That was the fitting expression crossing Leo's mind right now. Surprisingly, Alana could evoke a much greater fear, something Leo never expected.Leo gazed at Alana's sleeping figure beside him. Leo wasn't sure what he felt towards Alana. Leo knew that since Alana first appeared in his life, he perceived her as a threat. However, inexplicably, over time, that sense of threat eroded, and Leo began to worry that Alana might truly invade his heart.As in the park some time ago, Leo felt confused about his feelings. For a moment, he experienced a carefree life as he looked at Alana's peacefully sleeping face and gently touched her cheek. That simple event allowed Leo to momentarily forget the anger and pain in his heart.Leo's reverie was interrupted when Alana changed her sleeping position to face Leo. Like in the park, Alana slept with a serene expression. Leo felt the urge to stroke Alana's cheek again but stopped when his gaze fell down
Occasionally, Leo gazes at Alana, who is engrossed in reading a magazine in her hands. Leo senses that Alana isn't just reading, but rather observing him or perhaps lost in thought. Squinting his eyes, Leo attentively observes his wife not far in front of him.What's going on with her? It's rare for Alana not to disturb him when they're alone in a room. At least this time, Alana isn't incessantly talking about unclear things. Maybe since she returned late this afternoon, Leo doesn't know where Alana spent the whole day, coming back with a disheveled face, and Leo doesn't care. However, her contemplative mood this time is a bit unsettling, making Leo worry that the neighbor's chicken might suddenly drop dead because Alana is lost in thought."Did she eat something wrong?" mumbles Leo softly, continuing to watch Alana. "Please fetch the book from the shelf over there," Leo says, returning his attention to the book in his hands. Alana looks over with a blossoming smile but doesn't get up
"Morning!!!" A greeting in the morning makes Leo immediately blink his eyes and turn to look at his side. Even though it's been over a week, Alana's presence next to him when he first opens his eyes still feels unfamiliar to Leo.Now, with Alana sleeping on Leo's arm and holding him tightly, Leo doesn't know when their positions got this close. Before going to sleep, Leo usually limits the distance between them with a bolster and some pillows so that Alana doesn't get too close, although Leo is not sure if that method would work.Leo's reverie is interrupted when Alana rises from her sleep and puts on her bathrobe. Leo remains silent, continuing to observe Alana who is tying her hair. Unconsciously, his eyes scan Alana from top to bottom. Leo misjudged Alana when he first saw her; Alana is not cute, but she's attractive. That's what crosses Leo's mind now."Do you want to take a shower now? I'll prepare the warm water," Alana says, making Leo quickly avert his gaze and awkwardly clear
Slowly, Alana exits the car and stands in front of a not-too-large cake shop. The shop seems devoid of customers. Alana contemplates, perhaps it's too early, or maybe it's already noon, while the cake shop is usually bustling. Is this what Pedro meant by saying the shop is almost bankrupt?"Huff," Alana exhales a long breath. Why did she agree to manage this shop? She herself doesn't know much about the cake business."Alright, Alana, it's already done. You can handle it," she says to herself while patting her arms. Alana steps towards the shop, slowing down as she stands in front of the glass door with a sign that says "open."Before opening the door, Alana takes a breath and opens it carefully. "Good afternoon, can we help you?" greets a waitress after Alana enters.Alana observes the not-so-spacious room. "Oh, I'm Alana, the wife—""Are you Mr. Leo's wife?" the waitress interrupts, making Alana nod, and the waitress stumbles."Sorry, ma'am, I didn't recognize you," she apologizes.
"Pedro, is it true what I heard?" Leo asks to confirm. After Alana complained about the condition of the main cake shop owned by his late mother, Leo immediately sought confirmation from Pedro."Yes, that's true," Pedro replies."Why didn't you tell me?""I reported it to you, and you approved it.""When?" Leo asks with a slightly raised tone because he doesn't remember Pedro reporting about the chef's duties."I already mentioned that the chef who manages the shop is the old reliable person. Didn't you disagree with handing it over entirely to someone to manage the shop? You said you didn't trust it.""But you-""And you said it's better to trust that old person. Therefore, I entrusted everything to that one chef because he's the only old person we can really trust. Besides, his ability is quite good," Pedro interrupts Leo when he tries to interrupt the explanation."So, should we provide a fair salary for him?" Leo asks."Of course, we pay him higher than the average chef. Initially
This time, Camila walked while holding her uncle's hand, Charlotte's husband. He was a tall man, with blonde hair and striking blue eyes, leading her towards the altar, where Pedro was waiting for her with a beaming smile, making Camila's heart beat faster. Even if Danmonte didn't hold Camila's hand tightly, she would have stepped on her long dress several times because of nervousness. Somehow, his slow steps felt very fast.Until finally, they arrived right in front of the altar, where Pedro immediately reached out his hand, causing Camila to reach out her hand and greet him, prompting Pedro to immediately pull Camila up to the altar, where they would make their sacred vows for a lifetime, witnessed by some important guests attended only by friends and the closest people to Pedro and Camila.Making the sacred vows for life, always faithful in joy or sorrow, always faithful in sickness and in health, they expressed their vows wholeheartedly, living to complement each other until death
Camila stared at the large mirror in front of her, her heart pounding, unable to believe what she was seeing. Her body was now adorned in a beautiful long white dress, clinging gracefully to her figure, accompanied by makeup enhancing her face. This made Camila purse her lips, finally gazing upon herself as the bride she had dreamed of becoming.Her reverie was interrupted when someone entered, causing Camila to smile broadly. "Aunt," Camila said, as Charlotte walked in wearing a white dress clinging to her body as Pedro had described. Although her aunt was in her fifties, she truly looked like a woman in her thirties. Charlotte then approached Camila, looking at her niece with teary eyes."I never imagined my niece, whom I've taken care of since she was little, would grow up to be so beautiful, even becoming a stunning bride," Charlotte said, making Camila blush, only able to lower her head. Charlotte then reached out her hand and lifted Camila's face."You're truly beautiful. Just l
Pedro, Camila, Leo, and Alana are currently discussing the plans for Pedro and Camila's wedding, which will be held one week from now after Leo called Alana enthusiastically, who immediately agreed and promised to prepare the wedding for them. Alana asked Leo to bring Pedro and Camila to their home, and this is where they are currently discussing the dream wedding that Pedro and Camila have been longing for."I think it's better to do it indoors," Pedro said, but Camila immediately shook her head."No, I think it will be more sacred and special if we do it outdoors," Camila said, causing Pedro to turn and look at her."Darling, if we do it outdoors, the weather isn't always favorable, sometimes it rains, sometimes it's hot. Do you want our wedding blessing to suddenly be interrupted by rain? What about the guests and others? We can't just rush to avoid the rain, can we?" Pedro said, making Camila pinch his cheek playfully."But isn't there a tent we can use for outdoor events?" Camila
Leo barged straight into Pedro's room, suddenly, without even knocking, and saw Pedro looking like he hadn't slept for a week."What's up with you? Suddenly applying for leave for next week? Where are you going for a whole week?" Leo asked, seeing the leave letter submitted by his secretary."And what about you? You look really disheveled," Leo asked Pedro again, who was now sitting in front of him."Can I ask for your help?" Pedro suddenly asked, causing Leo to look at him with raised eyebrows."Looks like my guess was right, you've got a problem?" Leo guessed again."It's not really a big problem. I don't know, I could call it a problem or a blessing," Pedro said, making Leo just stare at him with a questioning look, wondering what he meant."A few days ago, after the dinner event at your place, I immediately called Camila's aunt and told her about my intention to propose to her, and also said that Camila's trip to California was canceled. And unexpectedly, she flew here right away
Pedro and Camila sat in silence, their faces tense as they occasionally glanced at the woman in front of them who was looking around."Is this your house?" the middle-aged woman in front of them asked."Yes, this is my house," Pedro answered, still with a tense atmosphere on their faces."What do you do to afford such a big house?" she asked again, making Camila immediately look at Pedro, then turning back to the woman sitting in front of her, a fashionable middle-aged woman who still looked like she was in her thirties, she was Camila's aunt named Charlotte."Aunt, Pedro is a secretary at Samudra Group. Do you know about that big company?" Camila asked, trying to explain a little bit about Pedro. After returning from dinner at Leo's house the next day, Camila and Pedro planned to tell Charlotte about their relationship. And what they didn't expect was that Charlotte immediately flew over to meet Camila and Pedro. Of course, she didn't agree with Camila's sudden plan. Charlotte said t
Pedro stopped his car right outside Leo's residence, but as he was about to step out of the car, Camila suddenly pulled the end of his jacket."Why?" Pedro asked, making Camila look at him with hesitation."I'm embarrassed," Camila said, making Pedro just purse his lips. Then, he reached out his hand and gently caressed Camila's cheek."Why be embarrassed? Weren't you very close to Alana before?" Pedro said, making Camila shake her head again."That's not what I'm thinking about. I'm embarrassed to meet Mr. Leo and to know that they already know about your proposal plans," Camila said, feeling anxious, making Pedro once again give her a reassuring smile. Pedro was captivated by the glow on both sides of his future wife's face, looking very beautiful tonight after Pedro had truly explained all his plans to Leo, even though Leo had guessed them beforehand. But Leo pretended not to know and treated the news as a surprise. That's why Leo and Alana decided to invite Pedro and Camila for di
Pedro fell silent, gazing at Camila who now only lowered her head."What does that shake of your head mean? Is it a sign that you're rejecting my proposal?" Pedro asked, causing Camila to raise her face again, looking into Pedro's pleading eyes."It's not like that," Camila said, causing Pedro to raise an eyebrow."Then what's your answer?" Pedro asked."Of course, I would gladly accept your proposal, but there's something bothering me. I'm still not sure about what you feel for me. It's hard to believe that you could declare your proposal so quickly, especially when we still have two weeks to get to know each other," Camila said, unable to meet Pedro's gaze as he now only looked at their intertwined fingers."Love doesn't require much time to settle in someone's heart. Imagine, initially I didn't think I would develop feelings for you, but when I learned about your feelings for me, I started to open my heart. And I also feel surprised, usually I never easily open my heart to other wo
Pedro stared at Camila with furrowed brows."What's wrong? I'm just giving my opinion on the movie we're watching," Pedro said, causing Camila to sigh deeply."I'm not blaming you for having an opinion about this movie, but can we not judge them based solely on scenes like that?" Camila said, feeling like Pedro was intentionally bringing up such scenes."What's wrong with that?" Pedro asked, seemingly wanting to corner Camila further."I don't know, but it's better if we just go back to watching. Besides, the scene has already passed. Look, they're not kissing anymore," Camila said, then fell silent while looking at Pedro, who was staring at her mischievously. Somehow, she had clearly mentioned the scene, making Camila close her eyes in embarrassment."You're the one who mentioned the scene so explicitly. Alright, now that they're done with their acting, I'm curious. What if we do it now?" Pedro suddenly said, making Camila widen her eyes."What?" Camila said, but her words were cut o
Camila, who was engrossed in watching the drama she had been eagerly anticipating, was suddenly startled when Pedro sat right next to her, causing Camila to furrow her brow as she glanced at him."Aren't you supposed to be resting?" Camila asked, making Pedro nod briefly."Well, I was planning to rest, but it turns out I'm not sleepy yet, so I thought I'd just keep you company and watch with you," Pedro said, causing Camila to fall silent and choose to return her gaze to the flat screen in front of her. Of course, at the moment, she was watching a romantic drama about love. Camila wasn't sure if Pedro would like the drama she was currently watching, but several minutes passed and Pedro remained faithfully seated beside her, not budging at all, causing Camila to hesitantly glance at Pedro who was focused on the movie in front of him. Could he actually enjoy films like this with a romantic drama vibe? Camila wondered as she looked at him with raised eyebrows, but from his appearance, Pe